Two superheros and a frog

We had a fairly low-key halloween. But it was fun and we still have too much candy...even for me.

Blake was boycotting his mask and Griffin is heavy.

Do not get me started on Blake's pose.

Eli and his best buddie, Isaac.

Pumpkin Carving Contest

I think everything sounds more fun if you add "contest" to the end. Shower contest. Cheeto eating contest. Find mom's keys contest. Am I right?

Anyway, we carved pumpkins awhile ago. Here is the proof.

Rewind - 4th of July

This year we took advantage of the long weekend and headed to Vegas for the 4th. Our great friends, Jake and Amanda, live down there and it seems like we are always looking for a reason to visit. Their kids are about the same ages as ours and they love to play. We stayed at Green Valley Ranch - which I highly recommend - it was great! We played in the pool, watched "Ice Age 3", ate fabulous food and shopped. Good times.

Eli and Jaxson

Blakey - aka Gilligan

The daddies and their babies

woo-woo

the big boys
(i know, Blake's hair is ridiculously long and does not look wonderful in any of these pictures)

Blake, Jaxson, Ryleigh, Eli

There was a band playing at the outdoor shopping area and the kids were diggin' their sound. They danced . . .

and even busted out the break dancing . . .

and were done.

Our hotel had a big firework show. We sat out at an amphitheater by the pool and watched.
*I really know how to sit like a lady, right.

Thanks for another great time in the sweaty desert. We love you guys!

Easter

I love Easter. I love the season. I love what we remember. For me Easter is an extra special time that I get to celebrate my little family. Our Savior's atonement and resurrection are the reasons that we get to stick together forever. Tender spot for me. I can't imagine my life without my three guys. So, we indeed had a good holiday this year. I had a special feeling in my heart on Sunday and was especially grateful for the sacrifice that Christ made for us. I know He lives and because of that, we will all live again.



Now onto our picture attempt.

seriously? what's that face all a bout?

for real?

handsome little men (and the big one, too)

thanks to this picture, I see blond in my future.

Apparantly it's hunting season.

blakey was determined to find all the "really" hidden eggs

cute nephew kelton

who knew eggs were so difficult

hi mom. i've already eaten my body weight in candy

some of the cousins egg hunting at g & g w's house

Christmas 08

Good times. Christmas eve was spent at gma & gpa w's house. Lots of yummy food and festivities. We opened some presents and then came home to wait for the big man in red. This was the first Christmas in our nine year history that was spent at home - our home. We have always traveled to family, which is so much fun. But this year was special. We slept in our own beds and started our own traditions. I loved it. I am always so overwhelmed to wake up on Christmas morning and realize how blessed my life is. I married a pretty great guy and have been given two miraculous little boys. It's a good feeling. Eli and Blake were so excited to go downstairs and see if Santa really came. He did. How sweet it is when your kids are still too young to have expectations and are happy with everything - I need to enjoy that while it lasts. Eli found that Santa listened to his plea for "Thomas watch out for the bridge". Which isn't really the name, so Santa had to do some digging to figure out what it meant. Blake saw his new bike, cooking set and rocking chair (I know what 2 year-old wants a rocking chair - mine.) Fun morning. We had a Christmas feast at our house in the afternoon and part of Ben's family came to share. All-in-all a good day. I must say that I give simplified Christmases two thumbs up!

christmas eve

gma & gpa w with 6 of 10 grandkids

christmas morning

reaction to seeing thomas watch out for the bridge

the above mentioned toy

more play food - whoopee

teaching little brother to ride his first big boy bike

cooking m&m soup

blake's version of making cookies - all by himself

peace on earth, goodwill toward brothers

Turkey Day

Happy late turkey day to everyone! We had a great one. Lots of food. We ventured up to my parents house for Thanksgiving weekend. We ate dinner at my Uncle Russ's house and it was fantabulous. I enjoyed each and every morsel that entered my mouth - the special punch my aunt Peggy made was delish. I got to spend time with my cute grandpa and see my aunts, uncles and cousins. I even found out that this cousin and this cousin have blogs I didn't know about. It was a grand old time. After eating my siblings and I decided to have a little karaoke party and played some Rock Band to finish off the evening. There's nothing like belting out some Whitney Houston to put you in the holiday mood - at least in my family!

crazy aunt hailey

gma jan and blakey

cutie patootie

blake had 5 scratches on his face

uncle richie and the boys

We hit the stores really early on Friday morning. OK it was actually 8 am but we still went. Ben and I got some great stuff - too bad we spent more money on fun things for us than on Christmas presents. Oh well, December is still young. We shopped, ate a yummy lunch and saw "Four Christmases". It was pretty funny - that Vince Vaugh cracks me up!
On Saturday we went out to dinner with with two fo my bestest friends and their husbands. This girl and this girl.

We really had a great weekend - thanks mom and dad for taking care of us so well. And thanks Hailey and mom for the babysitting. Love you all!

this was eli's favorite place - playing the wii

and this was blakey's - listening to music on daddy's headphones

dodgeball

eating cookies and eggnog with gpa

piggies for breakfast